This invention relates generally to a game apparatus, and more particularly to an improved game having a playing surface that may be tilted by opposing players to direct movement of playing pieces toward a goal area.
Many games have been developed in which a player uses actuators to tilt a playing surface so that a ball or other rolling object moves along a surface and under the influence of gravity to a goal position. One of the most recognizable examples of this is a tilting maze where a player must move a marble through the maze by tilting the maze surface in two orthogonal dimensions.
The problem becomes a little more complicated when the game is intended for head-to-head play by opposing players. One example of such a system is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,607,155 to Campbell in which four handles attached at spaced peripheral edges of the centrally-pivoted table are used by players to physically tilt the table in various directions. A drawback to the Campbell system, however, is that success depends in large part to the comparative strength of the players. That is, enjoyment of the game is severely reduced if the opposing players have mismatched strength.
Other head-to-head tilting games have been developed which raise or lower corners of table. Examples of these include U.S. Pat. No. 3,479,033 to Crisafulli, and U.S. Pat. No. 3,539,188 to Salverda. In Crisafulli, each player can rotate their two cammed handles to engage with the underside of the table surface and thereby raise that portion of the table. In Salverda, each player can push down upon two handles to lower the particular corners of the playing surface biased upward by springs. Drawbacks to these games are that the lifting and lowering of the playing surface may not be smooth and thus cause the playing pieces to bounce; furthermore, certain tilting actuators may be taken out of play, thus reducing enjoyment of the game.
Accordingly, the need arises for a game having improved controls for overcoming the drawbacks of these prior art games.